Chapter 18

Due to the dilatation of time, Keiichi could spend several years on earth, and it would only be a few weeks in hell respectively. He loved that time and wouldn't easily part with it for anything. During such times, the family put aside bloodlines and heritage, in favor of simple pleasures. Their days were filled with their daughter, who, thanks to her immortal body, aged very slowly. To her the world was new. So grand, that even a simple creature like a butterfly would amaze her.

Keiichi loved being a father, but now that his child was growing older, he wondered how lonely she really was. It had been eating at him, and he wondered what it would be like if she were to grow up an only child. When he was a mortal man, though he would covet things, he wouldn't ask for them…now that he was a demon, he voiced his expectations a little more freely.

His room was aged with the times, he knew, but the old comforts of his past appealed to him. He didn't often say it, but he was thankful for his magical powers. There was something about his leather jacket he couldn't replicate. The feel of denim jeans was also a comfort he just couldn't forget. His human lifestyle was outdated, and surely even his favorite television programs were merely a thing of the past…but with magic, that could all be remedied, so, his life in the shrine was a relic, but a loved one.

As he reclined lazily in his futon, his goddess lover next to him, he idly watched the angel and devil who shared his bedroom. They spent their time hued in their unearthly glows intimately, and though they were quiet about it, there was no question to what those two souls happened to be doing. Their feelings were flooding back into their masters, and it was a pleasant, yet slowly growing arousal, that would soon seek satiation.

"It's funny." Keiichi said offhandedly, as he let slip a contented yawn. "When I was a mortal, I didn't assume something like this would feel so natural."

"Yes, well mortals have their own luxuries." Belldandy told him softly, taking amusement in the devil that Keiichi called his own. The creature wasn't the friendliest of devils ever to be had, but, she had to admit, Koiji was loyal to Holybell. A devil of very few words, and often uncaring of the goddesses surrounding him, he rarely came out of hiding, unless Holybell sought him. "I thank the mortal realm, for it has given me a gift as well."

"I want more than earth can give." Keiichi said then, turning to look at her. "When I was a human, I'd given up on the idea of children, but now, I don't have to give that up anymore." He was sure that she could feel the greed bubbling up inside of him.

Although the conversation hadn't come up before, Belldandy knew that her first conception would eventually give rise to the topic of more children. The thought was one she'd happily amuse. "Megumi is still rather young, I believe. All in good time."

"I doubt we have that." Keiichi said, a soft but meaningful sternness to his voice. "Even as I am now, I think we're still racing against time. However, I've always considered a large family being something appealing."

"You want a brood?" Belldandy asked then. It was indeed possible to conceive multiple children at one time, but Belldandy almost worried for Urd, who would be left on earth with the children, if that were indeed the case. "This might seem an odd question, Keiichi." Belldandy began attentively. "However, just what do you consider large?" She bit her lip, if it was anything like the heavenly standard, they would likely need to enlist help.

"Three or four?" Keiichi shrugged. "Never really thought to put a number on how many kids…only that I think a large family would be best." He thought it might have been the demon mind within him, so coveting the idea of a legacy, but, he couldn't deny that he liked the sound of it.

Belldandy smiled at that, and also breathed a sigh of relief. "That's certainly doable." Belldandy nodded. "Though, when you live as long as most immortals do, with the time to procreate as they have, three or four children is actually considered quite a small family." Then with a smile, she let loose a small giggle. "Though, I assume it has much more to do with the fact that we age in a different way. Women retain their ability to carry a child indefinitely, so, large families are often closer to twenty or thirty, spread over several eons or so."

Keiichi considered that, and it eased him to know that his desires could be met…however, he had but one stipulation that his soul would not easily relinquish. "I want a son, Belldandy." He told her. "Megumi shouldn't grow up alone, and she should have siblings…but, I would also enjoy knowing that I have a son. Someone to look after what is rightfully his to protect." It was the way of it…having the strength to back up his future…and, he felt strongly about that anyway. "Grant me…grant us, what mortality never could." He said, leaning in to kiss her deeply. "Will you do that for me, Belldandy?" He whispered.

"Yes." Her reply was sealed with yet another kiss, a vow she prayed to keep.

…

Goddesses and demons, angels and devils, it didn't really make much sense to Megumi, who understood only a tiny part of what creation had to offer.

All that she knew, was that while she enjoyed playing with World of Elegance, and took some of the greatest comfort in Holybell, it was really her father's devil that captivated her the most. She loved the creature, clung to him whenever she could, and curled into him on the nights when everything else frightened her.

If it was because he was inherently quiet, or possessive of things he deemed he owned, the adults weren't sure. Even so, Koiji was a devil of the darkest markings that Urd had ever seen, and in her youth, she had seen a great many of them. His body was a deep ashen color, but adding to that a devil's signature pitch black wings and fangs, it didn't make for a comforting image. His fiery orange eyes were his own brand of terror, and he had no qualms about exhibiting aggression at the smallest annoyance.

He'd growl and take swipes at anything that got in his way. Most male devils weren't kind. They were built for their power and intimidation, and most young children were not particularly fond of their father's devils due to such extremes…it was the females devils who coddled them, and the males who protected them.

Megumi, however, was enthralled with Koiji.

"Do you really think you should let him play outside with her alone?" Urd asked in horror as she watched Koiji and Megumi play. The devil did everything with a mild disinterest. He would shoo the child away from his feathers, least she pluck at them, and made a point to play roughly with her. Hanging the child upside down, or tossing her into the air, yet, Megumi giggled anyway.

"He's never hurt her before." Keiichi shrugged. "I doubt he would start now." He looked outside, and remembered a time when his father used to do the same. "I used to like that kind of stuff too, when I was her age."

"I doubt your father could get that kind of air, Keiichi." Urd said with a wince as the little one flew high above the treetops. "If he drops her…"

"He won't drop her." Belldandy said, coming to the devil's defense. "Besides, you know just as well as we do, Koiji wouldn't take very kindly to you getting in the way of his personal time with Megumi anyway." Then, she smiled, she knew Holybell was outside someplace, and took just a bit of comfort in that. If anyone besides Keiichi could keep Koiji under control, it was Holybell. Some could even argue that Holybell did a better job of it. The devil couldn't seem to refuse her. "Even if she did fall, Megumi isn't exactly the fragile type."

"You can say that again." Urd sighed, with a shake of her head. "That kid is really starting to worry me."

"Immortal children, especially demons, grow used to rough and tumble play." Belldandy shrugged with just a hint of a sigh lacing her voice. "Though I do wish she would be more willing to take up a few sedative hobbies."

"I don't think knitting and tea making are going to be her forte." Urd muttered, not liking the sound of that. She certainly didn't take any joy in the idea. "She doesn't particularly enjoy television either." She gulped her sake with a smirk. "Your daughter wears me out."

"From what I've seen, demons, well…most of them, are thrill seekers. You can't prove it by me, but, the kids Meg's age are already taunting older demons and getting into fights." Keiichi crossed his arms, thinking a bit about that. "Hild told me that demonic children will have a knack for seeking out dangerous situations by default. It's just their way."

Urd nodded. "They're independent by nature." She said offhandedly, her breath catching every single time she thought the devil was cutting it close. "Megumi's just a little more rambunctious than I think she should be…especially where Koiji is concerned."

Belldandy shrugged, a distant memory making her smirk. Such fond times gave her comfort, and she let herself sink into her ponderings. "I don't know Urd. Skuld was pretty hard to manage too, I remember when she was little." In retrospect, Belldandy couldn't count how many times the youngest Norn threw a fit, or refused to be obliging to anyone besides her sisters, and even that was a long shot. "Sometimes, I really didn't think we'd make it through the night without calling someone for help."

"That was entirely different." Urd muttered. "Skuld's powers weren't attuning to her at all back when she was Megumi's age, so it was no wonder why she acted out. She was a goddess with only half of her senses." She looked over to Keiichi, putting it into context. "That's like a mortal who's both blind and deaf at the same time." With a shake of her head, she sighed. "I didn't expect that Skuld would be easy to take care of." Deciding she couldn't watch anymore, she sat back down at the table. "Your daughter is attuning just fine, so that isn't the problem."

"There isn't a problem at all." Keiichi finally sighed. "Megumi's just favoring her demonic side. We knew it was a possibility."

"She can still become a goddess." Urd shot back.

"Yes, she can." Belldandy agreed, though she was beginning to lose hope of that. "However, she could also continue to favor her demon side, Urd. It's a life she might choose. We can't deny that, and so we must prepare for that outcome, just in case."

"Would you really be okay with that?" Urd asked, the question cutting a deep rift in the room.

Belldandy looked over to Keiichi. She loved that man, bedded down with him, and had a child with him. He wasn't an unkind demon, and he wasn't at all like the horror stories told up in the heavens. "I suppose I would have to be." Belldandy finally settled with saying. "I don't mind what side she takes, so long as she's gentle and happy."